Nightmares
by silent sea maiden
Summary: Years after the war, Harry still has nightmares about it. Tonight, his son James has a bad dream of his own. Oneshot. Rated T to be safe.


"No, don't kill – no, don't – NO!"

"Harry, Harry, wake up!" Ginny searched through the dark for her husband's shoulder and gave him an urgent shake. On her second attempt, Harry's torso jerked up and away from her as he flung himself to the far side of the bed to snatch his wand from the nightstand. In an instant he had charmed the lights on and was back at her side. He cast his left arm protectively across her body, forcing her into the mattress, while simultaneously raising his wand arm in preparation. He was panting and trembling slightly but his eyes were alert. Even as Ginny watched, the wildness faded from them.

"It was a dream" she murmured, but the lessened pressure on her chest told her he already knew that. Slowly his taut shoulders relaxed. He allowed his wand to droop and he slumped back against the wall, allowing Ginny to sit up again.

"Sorry" he muttered, noticing how she was massaging her collarbone. She shook her head – no apology was needed – and snuggled up against him, leaning her head against his shoulder, placing a comforting hand over his still racing heart.

"Who was it tonight?"

Harry took a shuddering breath.

"Cedric – and Remus and – and Fred" Ginny bit her lip and held Harry tighter. His arms wrapped around her slight frame. They did not speak – Harry had had nightmares many times before, and everything that might be spoken had already been said. They sat in silence for a long time, spellbound by the unique bond these dark night hours always seemed to bring.

Ginny was on the verge of suggesting they go back to sleep when a floorboard creaked outside their bedroom. "James?" she queried as Harry instinctively reached for his wand again.

Their son cautiously stepped into the room. His hair was sticking up in all directions and his eyes were as wide as saucers. In one chubby fist he grasped the corner of a blanket tight to his chest, the length of it trailing between his legs and into the hall behind him.

"Come here, sweetheart." James eyed Harry nervously, but did as his mother asked, clambering onto the bed and into her lap. She smoothed back the hair that was plastered against his sweaty forehead. James had been plagued by frequent nightmares the past several months, but never before had one of his bad dreams coincided with Harry's.

"Bad dream James?" Harry spoke softly so as not to startle him. The boy nodded, then –

"Why were you yelling, Daddy?" his eyes were still big with fright. He hardly ever heard his father raise his voice like that.

"Daddy gets bad dreams too, sometimes."

"You do?" Fear gave way to surprise.

"Yeah."

"What do you dream about?"

Harry glanced sidelong at Ginny "Well, they're usually about…about people I love getting hurt."

"Like mommy and me?"

"Sometimes."

"Oh." James thought for a minute. "I get hurt lotsa times. Today, I hurted my knee when I falled." He pulled a pant leg up proudly to display a blue Band-Aid, patterned with gold snitches. "Your dreams don't sound so bad." He concluded.

Harry quirked an eyebrow and laughed in spite of himself. He poked James in the stomach. "Alright, tough guy, what was your dream about?"

The tale was somewhat incoherent, due to James' remembered terror and limited vocabulary, but from what Harry understood a fanged broomstick had chased James around the house and locked him in the pantry.

"-and then spiders and wiggleys-" James referred to his least favorite animal, snakes, as wiggleys – "came from everywhere and filled the _whole _room and crawlded all over me! And I screamed and screamed for you Daddy but you didn't come and – Hey! Why didn't you come?"

Harry looked down at the accusatory pout turned upon him. He could tell his son it had just been a dream and he would always be there when James needed him. The proud, loving father in him wanted badly to make that promise; almost believed he could keep it…

Harry ruffled James' hair before answering. Ginny made an exasperated noise as the strands she had been working so hard to restrain sprang up at once.

"I wanted to come help you James. I'll _always_ want to help you, and I'll always do the best that I can. But I couldn't get to you James. Sometimes I can't be there son, and that's when you need to remember how much your mother and I love you, and how proud we are of you. That's how you can be brave, and keep us with you always. Understand?"

James nodded, but there was no comprehension in his eyes. Harry smiled fondly. Someday.

James opened his mouth wide and yawned loudly.

"Ready for bed?" Ginny asked

"I think so."

"Alright, we're going to kiss away your nightmare, so it can't come back!"

Ginny bent over James' right temple, Harry his left, and kissed it soundly once, twice, three times. James nearly climbed out of the bed before turning 'round again and asking blearily.

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"You didn' have a mom an' dad when youwer little, right?"

"Right"

"So who got rid of your nightmares?"

Harry tried to imagine Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia rushing to the cupboard to soothe his fears and almost laughed.

"I didn't have anyone to do that."

"No one?"

"No one."

James was puzzled. Harry could almost see his tired little brain struggling to make a connection.

"But…how did you sleep?"

Harry shrugged. "Dunno. Guess I got tired enough. Looks like you're about ready to fall asleep, too."

James ignored the last bit. "C'mere" he stretched his arms forward with such authority that Harry bemusedly obeyed. James seized his father's face with both hands and pulled it down, kissing Harry sloppily on the forehead three times. "There." He yawned again. Ginny grabbed his hand.

"Alright James, say goodnight."

"'Night."

"Goodnight, son." Harry watched Ginny lead James back down the hallway, illuminated by her wand. When she returned to the room she noted the mistiness of Harry's eyes. She crawled back into bed and kissed him exactly where James had.

"Sleep tight." She whispered.

Harry flicked the light off and drew her close, murmuring "D'you know, I think I will."


End file.
